The Center for College Affordability & Productivity (CCAP) and Forbes compiled the 2016 list over three years with five general categories. Ranking factor categories include student satisfaction, postgraduate success, student debt, four-year graduation rate and academic success.

Notable Trends throughout this year’s list include the average cost of tuition and fees for the 2015–2016 school year was $32,405 at private colleges, $9,410 for state residents at public colleges, and $23,893 for out-of-state residents attending public universities.

Cumulative student loan debt is approximately $1.26 trillion and on average more than half (55 percent) of students at the Top 100 Schools receive institutional grants from the college itself and Ivy League students have among the lowest loan burdens.